‘Day Without Immigrants’ Protest Prompts U.S. Businesses And Schools To Close

The “Day Without Immigrants” protest is in full force with thousands of immigrants and supporters around the country participating in the movement. Major food chains including Starbucks, Burger King, and Taco Bell have shut down their Pentagon locations today. Grocery stores, food trucks, and taco stands in major cities like Chicago and Boston have been shut down.

According to Reuters, the “Day Without Immigrants” boycott was organized on social media and quickly spread throughout the nation. A “Day Without Immigrants” is aimed to show the president the effect immigrants have in the country. The nationwide protest is a response to President Trump’s pledge to crack down on those who live and are attempting to enter the country illegally.

'A Day Without Immigrants' supporters march with others during a protest on Thursday, February 16, 2017. [Image by LM Otero/AP Images]

Dozens of restaurants, bars, and other businesses around the nation have closed their doors on Thursday to show support for “A Day Without Immigrants,” according to Reuters. The other businesses are staying open and pledging to contribute a share of the day’s proceeds to nonprofits that aid Latino communities and undocumented immigrants.

The nationwide walkouts were prompted by Trump’s executive order that was issued on January 27. The order barred citizens of Iraq, Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen from entering the U.S. for 90 days and refugees for 120 days. The protest called on immigrants to stay home from work, avoid shopping, eating outside the home, and even skip classes.

A 28-year-old carpenter from Ecuador named Santiago told the New York Times that workers gathered yesterday to talk about the planned action. He said 500 people from different companies were employed at the New York construction site.

“The supervisor asked us if we were going to work… [Workers are from] Mexico, El Salvador, Brazil. Some wanted to work, others didn’t. They talked among themselves… We decided we wouldn’t, we’d support the cause. The supervisor said, ‘That’s fine, no one works tomorrow.'”

These activities were to be carried out to highlight the vital role immigrants play in U.S. society. Restaurants which depend heavily on immigrant staff closed for the day in cities including Washington, D.C., New York, and Chicago.

Celebrities joined in on the protests as well. Chef José Andrés, an immigrant from Spain and Rick Bayless of Chicago closed several restaurants in solidarity with protesters. Spanish-born Andres is the owner of Oyamel, according to the Boston Globe.

“People that never missed one day of work are telling you they don’t want to work on Thursday… They want to say, ‘Here we are,’ by not showing up. The least I could do was to say, ‘OK, we stand by you.'”

President Trump said the raids carried out by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency last week are a part of his highly acknowledged campaign promise to crack down on undocumented persons in the U.S. As the Inquisitr previously reported, the Department of Homeland Security has also called the ICE raids routine. Customs asserted that they targeted people who had criminal convictions.

The crackdown on illegal criminals is merely the keeping of my campaign promise. Gang members, drug dealers & others are being removed!

During The View’s Hot Topic’s segment, Whoopi Goldberg told the audience if they noticed an “empty studio at the top of the show” it was because of the “Day Without Immigrants” protests going on throughout the nation.

Whoopi said The View wanted to display what the talk show would look like without any immigrants. Goldberg then asked if there were any Native Americans in the audience and one woman raised her hand, the audience then applauded.

“A Day Without Immigrants” protest also comes after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents alarmed immigrant rights advocates by arresting some 680 people in raids across the U.S. last week.

As the Inquisitr previously reported, Texas became the first state to support President Trump’s travel ban and the mounting litigation regarding Trump’s temporary ban on travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries. The looming deadline prompted Texas Attorney General, Ken Paxton, to join the legal battle and file a friend-of-the-court brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

According to USA Today, an Albuquerque Public School principals wrote in a letter to parents that children need to be in class every day to benefit from the education the institution guarantees.

“We respectfully ask all parents to acknowledge that students need to be in class every day to benefit from the education they are guaranteed and to avoid falling behind in school and life.”

Santiago, who has lived in the United States for 13 years, said attending the “Day Without Immigrants” protest was for a significant cause.